Separation and reunion
by Bent Rose Standing Tall
Summary: A little one shot. Been rattling round my head for a while so I figured I should get it out. Spenser and hotch have been a couple for a long time but nobody knows. So when hotch and jack go into whiteness protection Spenser has to be left behind. This is the day after they leave and the day they get back.


AN i _know I'm messing with the cannon timeline a bit squashing the team finding out the real reason Hotch wasn't there up with Emily arriving and leaving out the special duty assignment thing that was the excuse at first. But doing it this way works better._

**separation **

The team had been exited when Emily had walked into the bullpen a half hour ago but the excitement had turned to confusion when she wouldn't tell them why she was there. She had said nothing more than that Rossi would explain and then headed for the round table room a full ten seconds BEFORE Rossi stuck his head out of his door and called "conference room now"

The team now sat round the table waiting for that explanation. All taking turns to shoot looks at Emily.

Rossi walked in.

"Now I know this is all very sudden and will come as a shock to you all but I'm afraid agent hotchner has stepped down as head of the bau, at least for now. Emily has kindly agreed to stand in for him." Rossi delivered the bombshell calmly.

"What, Why?" cried JJ

"Where's hotch gone" asked Luke

"And when will he be back" added Garcia.

"Peter Lewis has resurfaced. He made an appearance at jacks soccer game yesterday, Hotch feels strongly that this indicates that Lewis is planning to target jack in order to get to the team. Early this morning he and jack entered whiteness protection and will remain there until Peter Lewis is caught"

Spenser worked hard to look as if this information was new to him. He acted surprised and dismayed. He looked at the faces around him and arranged his own expression to match theirs.

He pretended that he hadn't been at the football game sitting next to Hotch when they had both spotted Mr scratch.

He pretended that he and Arron hadn't stayed up all night taking in circles trying to figure out what to do.

He pretended that they hadn't decided that witness protection was the only answer and that clearly jack couldn't go alone.

He pretended that They hadn't debated for hours wether to risk everything by Spenser going with them and thereby exposing their relationship.

He pretended that In the end they hadn't decided that they couldn't risk exposing themselves at this point. And that Spenser was needed to help the team catch scratch anyway.

He pretended that they hadn't spend an hour that morning all three of them in floods of tears trying to say goodbye to each other.

He pretended that he hadn't stood in the rain just out of sight at the side of the house (just in case) still crying watching the marshal drive his family away not knowing when or even if he would see them again.

He pretended that he hadn't taken one look in through the open door of their home then shut the door heading to work hours early not being able to bear going back inside alone.

He pretended that he hadn't silently thanked the stars that his old flat which he kept as a cover was currently between sub letters

He pretended that he hadn't made 3 phone calls marking arrangement to move back there that very day.

Yes Spenser sat at that table his expression and manner a careful copy of those around him doing a great deal of pretending. But most of all he pretended that behind his careful façade his whole universe wasn't shattering around him.

**Reunion**

After the funeral when the team and Morgan are grouped in the bullpen

Spenser stood with the others in the bullpen. Prentiss walked out of her office hanging up the phone

"Hotch has just called." Everyone looked up at her as she came down the stairs.

"The marshals have just given them the all clear they are on their way back, he says they are coming straight here,"

There was a cheer from the small still exhausted group.

"So when is boss man officially back" asked Garcia

"He isn't" replied prentiss sadly "he isn't rejoining the team. He says he's enjoyed having more time with jack and so he's decided to leave the front lines for a job with regular hours. He has accepted a desk job in the directors office."

They all looked shocked and sad, Spenser made a good show of looking sad as well but he was anything but. The previous day he had spoken to Arron for the first time in months. Arron had told him about the offer of a position in the directors office and that this time he wanted the desk job. Not only would it mean that he was off the front line and would have a 9-5 life for jack, but, and this was the deciding reason if he was honest, with him no longer in the bau department they could reveal their relationship, something they had both now come to realise was a priority.

Spenser was brought back to the present by JJ's comment

"Well that's fair enough I guess" . But who are we getting dumped on us for a replacement."

"Well" Emily said chuckling at the irony of JJ's choice of wording "hotch has asked me to take over" this was met with much cheering, they were all still congratulating her when a cry was heard from the doorway. Two voices sounding at once both easily recognisable.

"SPENSER" "DAD"

Spenser's head snapped round like a whip the others a moment behind. There in the doorway were Arron and jack. Less than a second later all three of them were running. They collided in the center of the bullpen and Arron and Spenser sank slowly down to jacks level. They were hugging each other as if they would never let go and tears were streaming down jack and Spenser's faces the man not caring who saw him cry, Arron's eyes were only barely staying dry (and only because they were in public)

Jack was the first to speak "daddy said I could call you dad all the time now. Even here"

"Yes buddy" Spenser choked "Yes you can, daddy and I don't have to hide anymore"

"I've missed you so much dad"

"I've missed you too buddy more than I can say" Spenser clutched the boy even closer.

They stayed like that for several moments before jack wriggled free wiped his eyes and went to greet the others.

the two men stayed kneeling on the floor only aware of each other, Arron's eyes were damp now but he was still managing not to let the tears fall.

"I've missed you soo soo much" cried Spenser "it's been so hard without you"

"I know baby" Arron replied "I can't describe how much I've missed you. I know what's happened The marshals gave me updates on you all, you've been through so much, I lost count of the number of times I almost came back. I'm so very sorry I wasn't here for you!"

"You couldn't have come back. You needed to be there for jack, I understand"

"I'm still sorry"

"I know, but please don't beat yourself up over it., I got through it and now we are together again"

"Yes we are, and a separation like this will never happen again I promise"

"You can't know that"

"Oh yes I can. No mater what happens from now on the family stays together, if there's another threat like this then we all stay or we all go, either way I won't let us be separated again"

"good" Spenser whispered quietly.

They held each other silently as the desperate need to hold each other began to subside, then they wiped each others eyes and stood turning to face the rest of the team.

The girls who has been hanging back watching the reunion with awe rushed forward to hug hotch

"I've missed you" squealed JJ

"It's soo good to see you" said Emily

"Welcome home my fine furry leader" cried Garcia. Hotch returned all the hugs and gave Garcia a look

"What? No matter what department you are in you will always be my Fine furry leader!"

Everyone chucked.

"You can't say fairer than that". Chuckled Morgan

Rossi shook hitches hand firmly. Then gave him and Spenser a pointed look glancing down at their joined hands.

"You've been keeping secrets" he said

"We didn't have much choice" replied Hotch.

"So how long has Spenser been your dad" JJ asked jack.

Jack gave her a look as if she was mad, "he's always been my dad".

Hotch chucked and decided to answer JJ's question properly.

"Spenser and I have been a couple since jack was a small toddler. When he began to talk he just started calling me daddy and Spenser dad, we didn't try to stop him rather we just taught him to call Spenser Spenser in public. by the time jack came to live with me after Haley …." He tailed off cleared his throat and continued, "by then Spenser and I were living together, we've lived as a family since then"

"Well that explains why Spenser was so often there when I brought the boys round for play dates, I never suspected a thing I just assumed he wanted to see his god sons"

"I did want to see them" said Spenser "that's why I stayed in. the first time you came over I considered going out, I was worried you would question why I was there, but I decided to take the chance and you didn't bat an eyelid"

"Why didn't you tell us" wailed Garcia suddenly "we would have kept the secret"

"The best way to keep a secret, tell no one. Second best tell one person. There is no third best" hotch smiled " a great man taught me that long ago, we just couldn't take the risk I'm sorry"

"We understand" said Rossi "don't we" he added glaring slightly at the others. They all nodded.

"Well" said Garcia clapping her hands. "hotch and Spencer's relationship is in the open, and we are all together again, JJ call will and tell him to bring the boys, Morgan call savannah, everyone turn off your phones, this calls for a celebratory dinner".

No body argued. They all pulled out their phones and turned them off JJ and Morgan made quick calls first then followed suit. And the whole group headed for the elevator chatting animatedly tiredness forgotten as they headed out for an evening together as a family.


End file.
